The WVU Library Faculty Assembly has selected Hilary Oblinger Fredette as the Outstanding Librarian for 2013.

The award, presented triennially, recognizes a faculty librarian who has made exceptional contributions toward the delivery, development, or expansion of library services or special programs for the constituencies of WVU.

“We applaud Hilary Fredette for her efforts and dedication to significantly improve library services for WVU students and faculty,” said Barbara LaGodna, Chair of the LFA Awards Committee. “She has a record of sustained excellence over many years.”

The WVU Libraries’ West Virginia and Regional History Collection has a new name. The letters WVRHC now stand for West Virginia and Regional History Center.

The change is intended to better reflect the nature of the state’s leading historical archives-library.

“Rather than simply a subject area within the WVU Libraries, the WVRHC is, in fact, a complex research organization with distinct reading rooms and galleries, expert staff, and not one, but many collections and units,” said John Cuthbert, Director of the WVRHC.

The Downtown Campus Library of West Virginia University will host a free workshop on grant seeking for nonprofit organizations from 9:30am to noon on April 13th.

The session will highlight the electronic and print resources available for free use at the Downtown Campus Library, which recently became a Cooperating Collection of the Foundation Center. Established in 1956, the Foundation Center is the nation’s leading authority on organized philanthropy, serving grantseekers, grantmakers, researchers, policymakers, the media, and the general public. In its new role, the Library serves as a hub for the Foundation Center’s resources, making them available to nonprofits and social service agencies, as well as the University community.

The workshop, led by Kief Schladweiler, Coordinator of Cooperating Collections with the Foundation Center (www.foundationcenter.org), will provide an introduction to the world of foundation fundraising. It will detail the grant-seeking process, the world of grantmakers, and available tools and resources. It will include instruction on the Foundation Center’s comprehensive online database, Foundation Directory Online Professional. Participants will learn how to create customized searches to develop targeted lists of foundations that match an organization’s funding needs.

To register, contact Penny Pugh at ppugh@wvu.edu (304-293-0334) or Alyssa Wright at Alyssa.wright@mail.wvu.edu (304-293-0337).
For more information, visit http://libguides.wvu.edu/grants.

West Virginia University’s Downtown Campus Library is offering a new service for nonprofit groups and social services agencies seeking grants to serve their communities.

The Downtown Campus Library recently became a Cooperating Collection of the Foundation Center of New York. In this new role, the Library will serve as a hub for the Foundation Center’s resources and provide access to detailed information on grantmakers and how to apply for grants.

These materials are open for use by individuals from nonprofits and social service agencies, along with those in the University community.

“The WVU Libraries are excited to join the network of Cooperating Collections,” Penny Pugh, Head of Reference, said. “With looming federal and state budget cuts, the role of philanthropy has never been more important. These resources will better equip nonprofits and social service agencies to secure financial support for crucial programs that serve the people of West Virginia.”

How do you handle the stresses of daily life? Some thrive on a non-stop schedule. Others take up a hobby, read, or seek out a few quiet moments to escape a hectic day.

A century ago, a doctor might diagnose a stress-laden woman with neurasthenia, or nervous exhaustion, and prescribe her months of isolation and rest. That diagnosis was the case for artist and writer Charlotte Perkins Gilman.

Her experience, referenced in her short story “The Yellow Wallpaper,” is the topic of a National Library of Medicine (NLM) traveling exhibit on display at the WVU Health Sciences Library through March 23. Consisting of six free-standing banners, “Literature of Prescription” is on display in the Library’s lobby.

An initiative supported by the WVU Libraries and the Provost’s Office will again help up to five faculty members enhance their courses while earning a $3,000 stipend this summer.

The WVU Libraries’ Information Literacy Course Enhancement Program is focused on integrating information literacy into the classroom to enrich student learning. The program began as a response to the 2010 Plan and now addresses “engaging undergraduates in a challenging academic environment,” the first goal of WVU’s 2020 Strategic Plan.

The WVU Libraries are ready to again be bustling with students, faculty, and staff. As the spring semester begins, one may want to take note of what’s happening at the Libraries and how the Libraries can assist users in their academic and research endeavors.

First, mark your calendars. The Libraries will change their hours twice over the next two weeks.

When the new semester begins on January 14, the Downtown Campus and Evansdale libraries will stay open until midnight Monday through Thursday. On January 22, after the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, the Downtown Campus and Evansdale libraries will begin staying open until 2 a.m. Sunday through Thursday.